Pod separator



F. A. MILLER POD SEPARATOR Aug. 4, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 8, 1962 INVENTOR. FRANus A. MILLER BY ATTYs.

Aug. 4, 1964 F. A. MILLER 3,143,212

POD SEPARATOR Filed Oct. 8, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet 2,

' INVENTOR. FRANCIS A. Mum

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ATTYs.

4, 1964 F. A. MILLER 3,143,212

POD SEPARATOR Filed Oct. 8, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR.

BYFRANCIS A. MILLER ATTYS.

United States Patent 3,143,212 POD SEPARATOR Francis Albert Miller, Milton-Freewater, Oreg., assiguor to Key Equipment Company, Inc., Iviilton-Freewater, Greg, a corporation of Gregor:

Filed Oct. 3, 1962, Ser. No. 229,077 4 Claims. (Cl. 20985) The present invention relates to a separating attachment adapted to remove pea or bean pods from the sticks, vines and other materials remaining with them after threshing.

The present invention is concerned with an attachment for a screening mechanism used to separate peas, beans or other crops from their pods or outer coverings. In such an operation the threshed articles are spread over vibrating screens and are moved longitudinally while the desired particles fall through the screens. Particularly in the threshing of peas and beans, it is common to have many of the pods remain unopened throughout the first threshing operation and, at the present, these unopened pods are discarded along with the sticks, vines and other trash which leave the screens at the exit end thereof.

The present invention is designed to provide a simple separator which will cull the pods from the longer sticks or vines and therefore allow the unopened pods to be retrieved for a second threshing operation.

It is a first object of this invention to provide such a separator having no mechanical moving parts, and one which is extremely simple to install on any conventional screening device.

A second object of this invention is to provide a separator which will direct the pods and unwanted material to two separate flumes so that they may be treated independently of one another.

These and further objects will be evident from a study of the following disclosure and the accompanying drawings which illustrate one preferred form of the invention adapted to a particular screening device. This form is not intended to completely limit or restrict the scope of the invention which is defined in the following claims.

In the draw'mgs:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a screening device equipped with the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a side view of the device seen in FIG- URE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a top view of the device seen in FIG- URE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a view of the device seen in FIGURE 1 as viewed from the right hand end;

FIGURE 5 is an end view opposite to FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 6-6 in FIGURE 3; and

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged fragmentary top view of the discharge end of the present invention showing the separating operations.

The present invention is an attachment for the screening device wherein peas, beans or other crops are separated by passage over vibrating screens. Such a device is shown in FIGURES 1 through 5. It comprises a rigid fixed framework 10 which is stationary and which supports the remainder of the machine. Mounted on the framework 10 for longitudinal movement relative thereto is a moving frame 11 having vertical sides 12 which serve as side boundaries for the separating screens. The frame 11 is carried on a series of support arms 13 pivotally connected to both the framework 10 and the frame 11. A driving crank 14 serves to impart reciprocating motion to the frame 11 by means of a connecting link 15 and a driving eccentric 16 which is rotated by means of a motor 17. The particular drive mechanism illustrated is merely exemplary. It is to be understood that the various details 3,143,212 Fat-enter! Aug. 4, 1964 of the screening device itself may be altered considerably, dependent upon the particular conditions under which it is to operate.

Basically the separating mechanism includes a plurality of screens 18 which are held in the frame 11 by means of side clamps 19. It also includes a spreader plate 20 at the entrance end of the screens 18 on which the crop is dumped and spread to fully cover the screen area. The present invention is adapted to be mounted at the exit or opposite end of the screens 18. As the crop is vibrated by the action of motor 17, it will tend to move from the spreader plate 2% across the screens 18 in a longitudinal fashion and finally will be deposited on a corrugated plate 21 which is provided at the end of the final screen 18. The plate 21 is mounted at an elevation so as to receive material sliding from the final screen 18. The corrugated plate 21 has a top surface with longitudinal grooves extending from one end to the other. These grooves have alternate valleys Within which the material will align itself. In order to facilitate this alignment procedure a series of projections 22 are provided intermediate the valleys. The projections 22 are merely upstanding posts or fins which serve to engage vines or sticks and turn them to a longitudinal position so that they will slide along the grooves of plate 21.

At the discharge end of the plate 21 is an open space separating the plate 21 from a transverse ledge 23. The ledge 23 has a smooth upper surface which is located slightly below the surface of plate 21. Ledge 23 is spaced from the edge of plate 21 by a distance sufficient to allow the pods to fall through this separating space. The separation of ledge 23 from plate 21 is adjustable by means of slots 24- and a clamping bolt 25 at each side of the ledge 23.

Mounted on the sides 12 of the frame 11 for movement along with the ledge 23 is a stick flume 26 which has an inlet 26a for water and which will receive sticks or other particles passing over the ledge 23. The flume 26 will carry such debris to a conveyor or other discharge device. Mounted on the frame 12 below the space separating the ledge 23 and plate 20 is a pod flume 27 of similar construction which is adapted to carry away the pods or other material falilng short of the ledge 23. Finally the conventional pea chute 28 is provided on the frame 11 running longitudinally below the screens 18. Thus the peas will be discharged along the chute 28, the pods will be discharged in the flume 27 and the waste, sticks, vines and other longer material will be carried away by the flume 26.

The separating operation is illustrated in FIGURES 6 and 7. As the frame 11 is subjected to its longitudinal vibratory motion the pods 29 and the various longer sticks 30, which may be portions of vines or branches or any other debris left from the threshing operation, will slide from the screens 18 and move along the plate 21. As the pods 29 and sticks 30 traverse the plate 21 they will tend to align themselves longitudinally along the grooves in the upper surface of the plate 21. As stated before, this will be facilitated by the upright projections 22. Therefore as the pods 29 and sticks 31) leave the plate 21, they will be longitudinally aligned. By varying the separation of the ledge 23 from the plate 21, one may insure that the pods 29 which have a substantially uniform length, will fall into the flume 27 and be carried away in the direction of arrows 31. The longer sticks 30 will span the gap separating the ledge 23 and plate 21 and will fall into the flume 26 and be carried in the direction of arrows 32. This will enable the user to effect the separation of the unopened pods 28 so that the unopened pods 29 may be rethreshed and the crop contained therein recovered.

The present invention is mechanically very simple but when adapting it to various separating machines.

many modifications may occure to one skilled in this art For this reason the above description is not to limit or restrict the scope of this inventive concept except as the invention is defined in the claims following.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A separator for pods leaving a vibrating screen assembly comprising:

a stationary supporting framework;

a movable frame mounted on said framework for limited longitudinal motion relative to said framework;

a plurality of separator screens arranged in a longitudinal row on said frame for motion therewith;

means on said framework operatively connected to said frame adapted to effect longitudinal vibratory motion of said frame relative to said framework;

a longitudinally grooved plate mounted on said frame at the exit end of said screens adjacent one end of the final separator screen adapted to have deposited thereon material passing from the surface of said final separator screen;

a transverse ledge mounted on said frame longitudinally displaced from said plate in a direction opposite to said screens and located elevationally below said plate, the distance separating said plate and ledge being sufficient to allow pods to fall therebetween;

and receptive means located vertically below the space separating said plate and ledge adapted to receive pods separated thereby.

2. A device as defined in claim 1 further comprising:

a plurality of upright projections fixed to said plate and extending upwardly intermediate the grooves so as to facilitate longitudinal alignment of material on said plates.

3. A device as defined in claim 1 further comprising:

second receptive means on said frame below the elevation of said ledge and on the side thereof opposite to said plate adapted to receive material passing over the ledge.

4. A separator for pods leaving a vibrating screen assembly comprising:

a stationary supporting framework;

a movable frame mounted on said framework for limited longitudinal motion relative to said framework;

a plurality of separator screens arranged in a longitudinal row on said frame for rotation therewith;

means on said framework operatively connected to said frame adapted to effect longitudinal vibratory motion of said frame relative to said framework;

a fixed plate mounted on said frame adjacent the exit end of said screens in longitudinal and elevational alignment therewith, the top surface of said plate comprising a plurality of longitudinal corrugations extendin along the length thereof;

a plurality of upright projections fixed to said plate and extending upwardly therefrom intermediate the valleys of said corrugations;

a transverse ledge mounted on said frame having a plane upper surface located elevationally below said plate and longitudinally displaced therefrom;

and a transverse flume on said frame below the space separating said plate and ledge.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 31,981 Hunter Apr, 9, 1861 86,332 Walker Jan. 26, 1869 v2,501,403 McKinsey Mar. 21, 1950 

1. A SEPARATOR FOR PODS LEAVING A VIBRATING SCREEN ASSEMBLY COMPRISING: A STATIONARY SUPPORTING FRAMEWORK; A MOVABLE FRAME MOUNTED ON SAID FRAMEWORK FOR LIMITED LONGITUDINAL MOTION RELATIVE TO SAID FRAMEWORK; A PLURALITY OF SEPARATOR SCREENS ARRANGED IN A LONGITUDINAL ROW ON SAID FRAME FOR MOTION THEREWITH; MEANS ON SAID FRAMEWORK OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO SAID FRAME ADAPTED TO EFFECT LONGITUDINAL VIBRATORY MOTION OF SAID FRAME RELATIVE TO SAID FRAMEWORK; A LONGITUDINALLY GROOVED PLATE MOUNTED ON SAID FRAME AT THE EXIT END OF SAID SCREENS ADJACENT ONE END OF THE FINAL SEPARATOR SCREEN ADAPTED TO HAVE DEPOSITED THERE- 